Have you ever wondered what separates recruiters who stay sharp in chaos from those who fold under pressure? Or why, even in a world full of AI tools and automation, the human touch still wins?

In this episode of Recruiting Is No Joke, Joel sits down with recruiting veteran Nicole Hirsch, who brings nearly two decades of agency and in-house experience across shifting markets—from the 2008 financial crisis to today’s AI-driven landscape. Nicole gets real about what’s changed, what’s repeating itself, and what recruiters must understand to stay relevant.

She shares stories from her early days recruiting mortgage underwriters during